Georgian opposition activists gathered in central Tbilisi on Saturday to continue their protests against the abuse of prisoners. Some carried brooms a symbol of torture whilst others held placards reading no one is free when others are oppressed. They called for the arrest of government ministers who they see as responsible for the abuses. Tbilisi s Gldani prison has been at the centre of a scandal after graphic videos emerged showing guards brutally beating prisoners and raping them with truncheons and broom handles. Protests against the abuses have been ongoing in the capital and the incident threatens to unseat the governing pro-Western party in the country s upcoming elections. Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili has sought to contain the damage by firing his interior minister and the minister in charge of the penitentiary system while also reshuffling prison personnel. But despite these efforts protesters have insisted that former Interior Minister Bacho Akhalaya and his brother who was a deputy defence minister be brought to justice. A victory for the opposition Georgian Dream Party in elections scheduled for 1 October would install the multi-billionaire b Bidzina Ivanishvili as Georgia s new prime minister. Ivanishvili would become Georgia s leader after Saakashvili s second and final term ends in 2013 thanks to a political reform that will shift power from the presidency to the parliament and the prime minister. Ivanishvili held a rally in Zugdidi on Saturday but has cautioned his party s supporters against taking to the streets apparently fearing a government crackdown that may derail the vote and steal what they hope will be their victory. He told Sky News that he has chartered a plane on three occasions in order to flee the country with his family. Violence and intimidation has been exerted on me and the opposition for the past eleven months. Saakashvili doesn t listen to alternative opinion. The effect of that is that the country s been devastated he said. Later on Saturday the opposition demonstration grew more heated with protesters setting fire to brooms and marching through the streets chanting against the government calling for peace and freedom. A small group of Georgian Dream party members went on hunger strike demanding the release of their party colleagues who were arrested following scuffles with police at Friday s protest. We have ... decided to start a hunger strike because of our friends who have been arrested without any legal grounds said Nodar Maisuradze. We will not stop the hunger strike until our friends are freed. While not denying that the prison abuse took place Saakashvili s government has accused the opposition of staging the videos and waiting to broadcast them until the final weeks of the election campaign. One of the two channels that aired the videos belongs to Ivanishvili. Both sides have expressed a desire for the election to take place peacefully.

• published: 31 Oct 2013
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